*** All JAR Articles ***

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on October 7, 2014August 28, 2016

Three Dates, One Action? The Demarests at New Bridge, 1781

One of the finest sources for anecdotal, first-hand accounts of the Revolution is the U.S. Pension & Bounty Land Applications in the National Archives. They contain vivid snippets of military service, actions, genealogical information, social culture, and many other matters of 18th Century life. They can also be highly confusing and misleading when taken completely […]

by Todd W. Braisted

Reviews Posted on October 6, 2014February 16, 2015

The Return of George Washington 1783-1789

Book Review: The Return of George Washington 1783-1789 by Edward J. Larson. New York: William Morrow, 2014. Hardcover $29.99. ISBN 978-0-06-224867-1. Pp 384. Index, bibliography, illustrations. While mountains of books have been written about George Washington most have covered his wartime or presidential careers. Few have discussed in any depth the period between his remarkable […]

by Hugh T. Harrington

Critical Thinking Posted on October 2, 2014March 20, 2015

The Myth of “Granny Gates”

Earlier this year the AMC network aired a new series, Turn, about the Continental Army’s Culper Spy Ring, based on Alexander Rose’s book, Washington’s Spies. In one episode, the character of Benedict Arnold refers derisively to General Horatio Gates as “Granny Gates.” One might think it was a bit of literary license on behalf of […]

by Will Monk

People Posted on October 1, 2014August 28, 2016

Bartholomew von Heer and the Marechaussee Corps

Washington and the Continental Army spent the winter of 1777-78 at Valley Forge, twenty-five miles northwest of Philadelphia. On November 27, the Continental Congress decided to restructure the Board of War. Up to this point the Board was made up of delegates from the Continental Congress. With only seven members who elected Washington still sitting […]

by Bob Ruppert

News Posted on September 30, 2014August 28, 2016

Victory for the Georgia Refugees

Smallpox raged across the backcountry in the late spring of 1781 and both of the Refugee commanders, Elijah Clarke and James McCall, caught the disease. Clarke was out of action for a month while McCall never returned at all, having died from the disease in March. During his time in bed, Colonel Clarke put plans […]

by Wayne Lynch

Places Posted on September 25, 2014August 28, 2016

The Great West Point Chain

Control of the Hudson River was important strategically during the American Revolution. The river, along with lakes George and Champlain, was a potential invasion route from Canada. It also was a physical separator of the colonies. Men as well as supplies crossed the river. To split off the northern colonies from the South and interrupt […]

by Hugh T. Harrington

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on September 24, 2014August 28, 2016

Button Gwinnett and Lachlan McIntosh Duel

Born in England in 1735, Button Gwinnett immigrated to Georgia in 1762 just before the Stamp Act Crisis brought political upheaval to the colonies.[1] Within a few years, he was well established and active in political affairs. Unfortunately, financial health did not follow and Gwinnett soon found himself with debts greater than the value of […]

by Wayne Lynch

Economics Posted on September 23, 2014August 28, 2016

The Currency Act: A Problem and a Solution

During the first half of the eighteenth century, there was a limited amount of specie or “hard money” in the American Colonies. There were three reasons for this: there were no established gold or silver mines; there was restrictive trade with the French and Spanish West Indies, and there were debt payments to the merchants […]

by Bob Ruppert

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on September 22, 2014August 31, 2016

The Georgia Refugees Turn the Tide against the British

Busy with the Siege of Augusta and subsequent exodus from Georgia, Elijah Clarke and most of the Refugees missed the battle of King’s Mountain. Instead, they spent time in Watauga with the Overmountain Men helping guard against raids from the Cherokee while the local militia traveled to South Carolina and dealt Cornwallis a serious blow […]

by Wayne Lynch

Techniques & Tech Posted on September 18, 2014August 28, 2016

The Rise of Virginia’s Independent Militia

Like thousands of colonists in British North America, Virginians were alarmed in the summer of 1774 by news of Parliament’s harsh reaction to the Boston Tea Party (which occurred months earlier in December 1773). Disturbed by the military occupation of Boston, the closure of Boston Harbor, and the suspension of Massachusetts’s charter and colonial government, […]

by Michael Cecere

Reviews Posted on September 17, 2014January 5, 2016

Dangerous Guests: Enemy Captives and Revolutionary Communities during the War for Independence

Book Review: Dangerous Guests: Enemy Captives and Revolutionary Communities during the War for Independence by Ken Miller (Cornell University Press, 2014; order on Amazon) A glance at the title gives the impression that this book is about prisoners of war – which would be fine, because there isn’t enough modern literature on that subject pertaining […]

by Don N. Hagist

People Posted on September 16, 2014August 28, 2016

How George Washington saved the life of Abraham Van Buskirk’s Son

Abraham Van Buskirk was Bergen County’s leading Loyalist at the onset of the American Revolution. A prominent “Practitioner of Physic” with an income of £ 200 per annum, Van Buskirk lived in Teaneck, across the New Bridge from John Zabriskie.[1] Both men were officers in the Bergen County Militia, Zabriskie a lieutenant colonel and Van […]

by Todd W. Braisted

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on September 15, 2014August 28, 2016

Elijah Clarke and the Georgia Refugees Fight British Domination

With the fall of Charleston, British columns spread into the southern backcountry. All of Georgia was occupied and the state government simply melted into the frontier along with most of the Whig population. In late June the prominent militia leaders of the Ninety-Six district in South Carolina took parole along with most of their men. […]

by Wayne Lynch

Advertising Posted on September 12, 2014September 11, 2014

Two Revolutionary Titles by Cornell University Press

Journal of the American Revolution welcomes Cornell University Press as its newest advertiser, promoting two new Revolutionary War titles: For Fear of an Elective King George Washington and the Presidential Title Controversy of 1789 by Kathleen Bartoloni-Tuazon [PURCHASE] In the spring of 1789, within weeks of the establishment of the new federal government based on […]

by Advertising

People Posted on September 11, 2014August 28, 2016

Elizabeth Burgin Helps the Prisoners… Somehow

I was recently asked to speak about Elizabeth Burgin, an American woman who risked her life helping prisoners of war during the American Revolution. I’d never heard of her, but thanks to the magic of the internet I was quickly able to locate the key primary sources about her, and a large number of articles […]

by Don N. Hagist

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on September 10, 2014August 28, 2016

The Unsuccessful American Attempt on Verplanck Point, July 16-19, 1779

In the early morning hours of July 16, 1779, Brigadier General Anthony Wayne and the Continental Corps of Light Infantry successfully stormed and carried the British works and garrison at Stony Point on the Hudson River. Not long after, gunners from the Continental Artillery turned the captured guns across the river to fire upon the […]

by Michael J. F. Sheehan

Reviews Posted on September 9, 2014January 2, 2015

Band of Giants: The Amateur Soldiers Who Won America’s Independence

Book Review: Band of Giants: The Amateur Soldiers Who Won America’s Independence by Jack Kelly. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. Hardback. $27.00. ISBN: 978-1-137-27877-7; 368 pages, Index. It is difficult to condense the Revolutionary War into one volume and make it readable, informative, entertaining and even fascinating. Jack Kelly has done just that by focusing on […]

by Hugh T. Harrington

Prewar Conflict (<1775) Posted on September 8, 2014August 28, 2016

The Statue of George III

On the southern tip of Manhattan Island is a small oval area called Bowling Green. On this site on March 21, 1770 a statue, sculpted by Joseph Wilton, of King George III was erected. It was commissioned on June 23, 1766 by the New York General Assembly because of “the innumerable and singular Benefits received […]

by Bob Ruppert

Prewar Politics (<1775) Posted on September 5, 2014August 28, 2016

The First Continental Congress Responds to the Intolerable Acts

The summer of 1774 was eventful for the colonists of British North America. News of Parliament’s harsh measures against Massachusetts, and particularly Boston, for the destruction of East India tea back in December 1773, produced much anxiety and sympathy for the Bostonians from their fellow colonists. Many agreed with Edmund Pendleton, a moderate member of […]

by Michael Cecere

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on September 4, 2014August 28, 2016

So Heavy a Trial: The Burning of New York’s First Capital

“We are hellishly frightened,” Gouverneur Morris wrote to a friend on October 8, 1777.[1] Morris was attending to the business of the New York State legislature in Kingston, a town one hundred miles north of New York City. The old Dutch village had that year, by default, become the state’s capital. Morris and his colleagues […]

by Jack Kelly

People Posted on September 3, 2014August 28, 2016

General Washington and the Body-Snatchers

Among the many challenges Gen. George Washington faced in his first year as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, he probably didn’t expect to deal with grave-robbing. But on 1 September 1775 his general orders included this admonition: Complaint has been made to the General, that the body of a Soldier of Col. [Benjamin Ruggles] Woodbridge’s […]

by J. L. Bell

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on September 2, 2014August 28, 2016

Who Really “Crossed the T” in the Battle of the Saintes?

When de Grasse’s fleet left Yorktown for the Caribbean on November 4, 1781, he was already planning how to pursue the second objective of the July 17, 1781, de Grasse/Saavedra Conventions. The objectives that he had agreed to with the Secretary of State and General Bureau for the Spanish Indies, Don Francisco Saavedra, were “to […]

by Bob Ruppert

News Posted on August 27, 2014August 28, 2016

Disarming the Disaffected

In a previous article I said that there are “times when a gun would have come in real handy” but there were no guns to be found.[1] Well the flip side to that coin is when guns aren’t so useful—at least not to you—and those incidents generally involve guns that are being aimed at you. […]

by Thomas Verenna

Religion Posted on August 25, 2014August 28, 2016

The Influence of “the Black Robes”

One of the lesser known but highly influential forces that kept the doctrines of the social contract, natural rights and the rule of law first and foremost in many colonists’ consciousness was the New England Clergy. They believed there was a divine covenant between man and God that was fixed, sacred and inviolable; from that […]

by Bob Ruppert

Reviews Posted on August 20, 2014January 2, 2015

American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution

Book Review: American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution by Walter R. Borneman (ISBN 978-0-316-22102-3; 470 pages) concentrates on the months from late 1774 to Washington taking command in July, 1775. It is printed in an easily readable font with a few illustrations inserted in the middle and ten maps spread throughout. The […]

by Michael Barbieri

People Posted on August 19, 2014August 28, 2016

8 Fast Facts About Hessians

By the start of the American Revolution, the British military was spread thinly across their global empire. Despite having tens of thousands of troops in America throughout the war, it was still necessary to supplement their numbers by hiring foreign troops. By 1776 thousands of soldiers from Hesse-Cassel were pouring into New York. They served […]

by Bethany Collins

People Posted on August 18, 2014August 28, 2016

His Excellency’s Guards

On March 11, 1776, George Washington, headquartered at the Vassal mansion in Cambridge, Massachusetts, issued the following General Order to his officers: “The General is desirous of selecting a particular number of men as a guard for himself and baggage. The Colonel or Commanding Officer of each of the established regiments, the artillery and riflemen […]

by Bob Ruppert

Advertising Posted on August 15, 2014August 14, 2017

Join: American Revolution Round Tables

American Revolution Round Tables (ARRTs) are devoted to the study of all aspects of the American Revolution and Revolutionary War. Composed of historically-minded individuals, each ARRT provides a forum for the exploration, discussion, and sharing of knowledge about this critical period of our country’s history. All are welcome to join in this enlightening and enjoyable […]

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Places Posted on August 14, 2014August 28, 2016

The American Revolution Comes to Albany, New York, 1756-1776

“The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world…He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our […]

by Elizabeth M. Covart

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on August 13, 2014August 28, 2016

Misinformation, Disinformation, and Gen. Washington’s Gunpowder Supply

In the summer of 1775, Gen. George Washington fell victim to bad information about the Continental Army’s gunpowder supply. When he finally received accurate data, it left him temporarily speechless, fearful of a British attack, and unable to carry out his plans to free Boston. Nearly two hundred years later, a historian created a counter-narrative […]

by J. L. Bell

Techniques & Tech Posted on August 12, 2014August 28, 2016

Easton’s Missing Dead

When it comes to Pennsylvania military hospitals during the Revolution apart from Philadelphia, Bethlehem has received a great deal of (appropriate) attention by scholars mainly because (1) it became the new Headquarters of the Hospital Department under Dr. Shippen, and (2) shortly after wounded arrived, the town began to see a very high mortality rate. […]

by Thomas Verenna

People Posted on August 11, 2014August 28, 2016

The Tryon County Patriots of 1775 and Their “Association”

On August 14, 1775 some North Carolina colonial men, possibly as many as four dozen or so, met at the Tryon County courthouse. That is, they crowded into Christian (“Christy”) Mauney’s isolated log house at a country cross roads thirty some miles west of Charlotte. There they drafted and copied into the minutes a document […]

by Hershel Parker

Critical Thinking Posted on August 7, 2014August 28, 2016

Duels of Honor

Dear Mr. History: I’ve read about some duels of honor involving senior Continental Army officers and something doesn’t make sense to me; why were they dueling in the middle of a war? Signed, At Your Service, Sir. Dear Service: Some officers took to dueling like ducks to water. Here’s an example. In the summer of […]

by Michael Schellhammer

Reviews Posted on August 6, 2014January 2, 2015

Inventing Ethan Allen

Book Review: Inventing Ethan Allen by John J. Duffy and H. Nicholas Muller III. Hanover and London: University Press of New England, 2014. Hardcover: $85.00, ISBN 978-61168-553-4. Pp. XII, 285. Index, bibliography, maps and illustrations. “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.” From The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence “Where I’m from, we believe […]

by Gene Procknow

Techniques & Tech Posted on August 5, 2014August 28, 2016

Top 10 Reasons to Join the British Army

The army that attempted to subdue rebellion in America in the 1770s and 1780s consisted primarily of soldiers from the British regular army. Although supplemented by German regiments, regiments raised in America composed of colonists, and other auxiliaries, most garrisons and campaign forces were composed largely of career soldiers who had enlisted in Great Britain […]

by Don N. Hagist

Reviews Posted on August 4, 2014February 23, 2015

AMC’s “Turn” – First Season Review

TURИ, the AMC cable network series that recently finished the 10th episode of its initial season, has been renewed for a second season of ten more episodes. Before the season aired, Michael Schellhammer, who screened the first three episodes, wrote a generally positive review of the series that referred to it as “a fascinating look […]

by Steven Paul Mark

News Posted on July 31, 2014August 28, 2016

Three Dates, One Action? The Demarests at New Bridge, 1781

The Return of George Washington 1783-1789

The Myth of “Granny Gates”

Bartholomew von Heer and the Marechaussee Corps

Top 10 Articles of September 2014

Victory for the Georgia Refugees

The Great West Point Chain

Button Gwinnett and Lachlan McIntosh Duel

The Currency Act: A Problem and a Solution

The Georgia Refugees Turn the Tide against the British

The Rise of Virginia’s Independent Militia

Dangerous Guests: Enemy Captives and Revolutionary Communities during the War for Independence

How George Washington saved the life of Abraham Van Buskirk’s Son

Elijah Clarke and the Georgia Refugees Fight British Domination

Two Revolutionary Titles by Cornell University Press

Elizabeth Burgin Helps the Prisoners… Somehow

The Unsuccessful American Attempt on Verplanck Point, July 16-19, 1779

Band of Giants: The Amateur Soldiers Who Won America’s Independence

The Statue of George III

The First Continental Congress Responds to the Intolerable Acts

So Heavy a Trial: The Burning of New York’s First Capital

General Washington and the Body-Snatchers

Who Really “Crossed the T” in the Battle of the Saintes?

Top 10 Articles of August 2014

Disarming the Disaffected

The Influence of “the Black Robes”

American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution

8 Fast Facts About Hessians

His Excellency’s Guards

Join: American Revolution Round Tables

The American Revolution Comes to Albany, New York, 1756-1776

Misinformation, Disinformation, and Gen. Washington’s Gunpowder Supply

Easton’s Missing Dead

The Tryon County Patriots of 1775 and Their “Association”

Duels of Honor

Inventing Ethan Allen

Top 10 Reasons to Join the British Army

AMC’s “Turn” – First Season Review

Top 10 Articles of July 2014